Mama shook her head. Never could read her.
“I’m sorry! What’s wrong with him?” Daddy looked worried.
“Please, follow. I carry him to Bedelia’s chamber.” My room? I kept pace and he walked fast. I saw spots that danced in front of my eyes.
Daddy grabbed my arm. “You’re not sick, are you, Bedelia?”
“Becky had COVID, but I’m on antivirals and I got an aandat.”
“So did we.”
Our walk across the ship didn’t take long. A tapestry had Keiley and I standing on a yellow planet. Yellow sand, filled with flowers and mud marshes so all the Zheien can bathe, under a yellow sky with five moons. “That’s not Elshar Mashai, is it?”
Wulai didn’t hesitate, and Keiley had a grip on my arm, so I got yanked through! “Ejis nae! Wu, see my wife! I nae meant to hurt you, Bedelia, my Bedelia!” He cried.
I kept going. Wulai gave a hop onto the bed and I crawled up. He nodded for a leiwege and I sat in it, then he put Keiley in my arms.
“Wu, see her arm—”
“Keiley, my arm is fine! I’m not used to doorportals, ‘cause nobody used ‘em in Rainbow! My arm doesn’t hurt at all.”
“I am a terrible husband, to treat you so—”
Gently, I pulled his head against me. “I love you, Keiley. You would never hurt me. My arm is fine. You were a perfect gentleman when you lived with me and after we married in Rainbow. Don’t worry. Let Wulai help you.”
I wiped his yellow tear-powder and my tears, then mixed ‘em where he could see. He went white from gray. Getting off his feet helped.
Another healer came in and explained leiwege, those wonderful bendable mattresses, and helped my parents sit in one apiece. Keiley and I shared one.
Wulai rubbed Keiley’s head with tnshey. It smells kind of like mint but makes a Zheien’s skin warm. “I need to convince both of you that too much upset can kill us. We are nae like you.
“Our colony had to move from our world. We were a mining colony, and all of us are poisoned from waste materials. Because we have war, we could nae run many progs to remove poisons from our air and foods. Now we have the Nefcot Ring and energy is plentiful, because of an Areonian scientist who discovered a new fuel lastweek. This is how we escaped destruction.”
“You’re at war? But no one mentioned that this morning at the UN meeting!”
“Mr. Stone, I am nae a diplomat. Jos Keil is, but he is too unwell to explain—”
“Wu, I must! Surely he thinks Earthans must fight in the War and this is nae so! I—”
“Jos, rest, or I must give you an herb for sleep.” It shocked me to hear a healer say that! In Rainbow people could refuse herbs! But, a very few times, they did push, if a life was at stake.
His sigh rumbled on me. “Eae, Wu.”
“I think you will enjoy my remedy. This is chocolate ice cream with caramel. He relieves pain in us. Taste.” A wave and he had a bowl, a small scoop in a glass dish. Oh, that’s eaezhfee, that this red-violet ship is made of, and it bends easily. Keiley enjoyed eating the sweet treat.
Mama and Daddy watched. When Wulai finished feeding him all of it, my husband went to sleep. A little yellow came back into his skin.
Wulai waved the dish gone in a flash of white light. “Have you questions for me?”
Daddy whispered, “I don’t want to wake my new son up.”
“You will nae. I run a containment so he nae hears. Did one explain to you that Zheien can nae survive on Earth?”
“The diplomat who helped us was more concerned with us leaving Earth because Atherton’s enemies are after us! I have 50 employees and their families coming. I chose MarKu because it’s bigger, and maybe I can run my import business from there. I won’t be doing plastic surgery, and Zheien healers don’t make any money.” My dad rubbed his brown eyes.
“But, Dad, Zheien healers do learn from surgical techniques! A nurse from Earth learned how to adapt heart surgery techniques to save Zheien children on Ye~!”
He blinked at me. “So they do surgery?”
“Yes! And Zheien kings pay the healers. They offered to build us a house, all the food and medical care we needed was included, and I could’ve gone back to school if I wanted! It’s not like Earth.” In a lot of ways that pleased me a lot! Their healers saved Becky, even though they couldn’t save Antomias. Thinking about all the Zheien who died in my arms made me shudder.
They brought a diplomat to talk to my parents, and Wulai waved a bowl of tnshey on the other side of me. We both rubbed it on Keiley’s arms and legs. As I lifted his leg into my lap to work on his foot, I expected it to be heavy. He doesn’t weigh as much as a big man like him should. I really didn’t want to cry in front of my parents. They always fussed if I did. But, they didn’t say anything, this time.
My daddy finally decided to let his general manager run imports and he’d start learning Zheien Healing.
“I can teach you, my son.” Wulai smiled at him.
“Where did you get your license to practice medicine?”
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“We apprentice, to learn healing. Some go to Sigan Mas to learn. I went with Galarsmen, before he traveled to Ishah to learn from Via, Master Healer Of All Ishah, then learned more from him, after.”
They talked about mine injuries and what healers do for deformities. Wulai said if a Zheien gets a deformity, they die of the upset, so if Daddy learned Zheien healing, he could save lives with what he does. That interested him.
I got tired and pulled Keiley into my arms. I didn’t really care about designing a house, or worry about where Keiley and I would live. I just want him to live! He’s cold. A healthy Zheien should burn me. I got telepathy in Rainbow and thought I’d learn healing, but Wulai warned me not to use it. I always wondered if my telepathy killed him. His was so damaged, Wulai told me, that my feeble telepathy could kill him if I tried to share a memory, and Keiley always asked me to do it. So, Wulai taught me not to use it at all.
“Bedelia, we have to leave for the ship now.”
I blinked sleep out of my eyes and Keiley pulled me off the bed and set me on my feet. “Oh, I wasn’t going to fall asleep. Are you okay, Love?” My voice broke.
Mama and Daddy looked at me. Daddy was rubbing his eyes. “Darn it, I hoped they cured my narcolepsy—” Then he startled and tried to look more alert.
Mama stared at him. “You’ve been a surgeon for years, and you have narcolepsy? Why haven’t you been sued for malpractice?”
“Because I tell certain nurses what to watch for and what to do, so I never mess up a surgery. It usually happens when I’m charting, not when I’m in surgery. I started a group of surgeons with it so we can cover for each other. Why do you think I’m so strict about getting to bed on time?”
I hid my shock. The few times we ever went to a movie together, Daddy and I slept through it. Maybe I have it, too. How many secrets do they have, anyway?
Wulai reached for him. “My son, tell me about this.”
Daddy sighed. “It’s a disorder of the sleep-wake cycle, so that a person can get adequate sleep, yet feels sleepy at odd times. I’ve had it since I was a kid.”
Wulai nodded. “Many of us have troubles with our sleeping. Our home had many dangers, and all diplomats feel they must be so vigilant, some die of exhaustion. Let me show you options, in your progs, once we are on the ship.”
Keiley pulled me very close as we walked, so much so I stumbled several times. But, he held me up. I was wearing flat shoes, which felt odd to me after years of wearing high heels all of the time. But these shoes, and this modest dress, pleased me. I think Keiley dressed me. It was a really pretty shade of light green, not too bright. Keiley’s family color.
We walked across the crowded ship. A group ahead of us talked happily about MarKu. I tried to look happy. Felt like we were marching to a funeral. Mama gripped Daddy’s arm and I realized, here I am doing that to Keiley! Why can’t I just be happy, a new bride?
“Love, fear nae. I traveled many times on ships. There is nae harm, for an Earthan.” His blue eyes stayed medium blue. He’s trying to be brave, but I thought of how Nespa suffered on Molly’s Ship--
Wulai hugged him. “My son, Pirad modified all ships and portals. Remember our journey here? Nae Zheien had any pains! I worried that I had nae enough nesfa and tesfa je for everyone, for we had nae preparation after Esta Faho moved, and we nae needed any. Perhaps you were too unwell.”
I pulled Keiley’s arm even closer. “You were sick on the way here?”
“Nae concern, Love. Many tried to harm me with their telepathy, on Elshar Mashai. Is always so on missions. I had trade disputes, then helped Elshar Mashai Zheien Colony move in secret, then met our colony, and King Nitomahan asked me to go to Earth for him. Wu came with me and gave me healing.”
Wulai rubbed the back of his head. “Eae, you are strong, Jos. I only had to give 2 days of nesfa.”
I nodded. Two days isn’t bad. Seven’s the max.
“Hey, did you hear anything about Becky?” Elsie caught up.
“Elsie! I’m so happy to see you! No, I haven’t seen her and Tom—Antomias, sorry.” Oh, my face burned! He’s First Prince!
“Love, I am sure Tom will offer his shortname. You and Becky and Elsie are close, eae? I am happy my wife has you, Elsie. Leaving your home must be difficult.”
Elsie pulled at her beaded hair, then carefully let go. I tried to help her do it but she’s better at it. “Oh, Girl, I’m glad we’ll be together! Becky must be restin’. They will tell us if she gets bad, won’t they?”
Wulai smiled at her. “If you have concern, think of her and you may see her healer’s record.” A screen popped up. It just named her healer, Konomai, and said she was sleeping. No details, so mine won’t show anything. “Kono watches, and if you have worries, he has time to speak to you.” His red-gold eyes went a bit lighter. The change isn’t much, with red-gold eyes.
“No, that’s all right. Let Becky sleep. She’ll be all right, won’t she?”
“Eae. Kono tells me she must rest much today, but soon she will be well again.”
“I’m so glad Pas gave me a aandat! I’m already in trouble at work for missin’ today! Felt good to quit!”
I startled. “Oh, no! I didn’t call ‘em!”
Mama turned around. “Oh, I did! That woman wasn’t happy, but I got her to give you severance pay. Amazing what a little mention of our lawyer can do. Everybody knows of Allen Altman. He won’t represent scumbags like Atherton.” She smiled.
“I agreed to a clone to take him down.”
Mama stopped so fast we nearly ran into her! “Don’t tell me you were going to take that job!”
Didn’t expect her to know about that! It was a promotion from Pera.
“Mea, with what Bedelia knows, Atlanta Police can open a case tomorrow. A detective also agreed to a clone, and he is very happy Bedelia’s sa volunteered.”
“She’ll get killed! Nobody asked me!”